Study of children’s mental health falls short of recruits

A Hamilton study providing crucial up-to-date information about the mental health of Ontario's children is struggling to recruit families.

"We're really concerned," said Dr. Michael Boyle, who is leading the research at the Offord Centre for Child Studies affiliated with McMaster Children's Hospital and McMaster University. "We need a high and even response rate."

Statistics Canada randomly selected 13,500 families with children to take part in the Ontario Child Health Study and started contacting them in October. Families can't volunteer because it must be a random sample from across the province.

So far, it's estimated 65 per cent of the families chosen will agree to take part. Boyle says that's far too low, especially when compared to more than 90 per cent in the original study just over 30 years ago which put Hamilton at the forefront of children's mental health research.

"We knew it was going to be a tough sell but we feel it's important," said Boyle, the Canada Research Chair in the Social Determinants of Child Health and director of the centre. "The information on child and youth mental health is out of date."

The original study done in 1983, with updates in 1987 and 1999, remains the dominant data used to help determine health policy and funding.

Its shocking findings were that one in five children have a mental health issue and most go untreated. The research contributed to $3 billion in funding for provincial and federal programs and services, including the creation of Ontario Early Years Centres.

But a lot has changed since Boyle did the original study with the late Dr. David (Dan) Offord, the namesake for Hamilton's renowned research centre.

Boyle rhymes off major shifts in immigration, a growing divide between rich and poor, the breakdown of families leading to higher numbers of single parents, and differences in teen pregnancy for a start.

However, there are far better programs now for kids under 6 in Ontario. This has led to the question of whether children's mental health issues really are more prevalent and severe today or if this is a false perception.

The last study "brought attention to this and it stimulated resources," said Boyle. "That's why these studies are so important — so the public knows and policy-makers know what is actually happening."

The $8.3-million study funded by the province and the Canadian Institutes of Health Research requires families to give one to two hours of their time.

"It's crucially important to our work," said Kim Moran, CEO of Children's Mental Health Ontario, which represents treatment providers. "The data we're using right now is old. … We have to have the information up to date to deliver the right programs."

The much-anticipated sequel to the original study of 1,900 families is far more ambitious. It's seeking a minimum of 7,000 families with a total of at least 10,000 children age 4 to 17 but, ideally, thousands more than that. It will also look at communities, including Hamilton, to see how neighbourhoods and school exacerbate or mitigate mental health issues.

"If we have no data, we have no action," said Dr. Jean Clinton, a leading child psychiatrist from Hamilton who advises the province on education. "We need to know how many of our young people are suffering with mental health problems. It's a huge thing."

Study of children’s mental health falls short of recruits

A Hamilton study providing crucial up-to-date information about the mental health of Ontario's children is struggling to recruit families.

"We're really concerned," said Dr. Michael Boyle, who is leading the research at the Offord Centre for Child Studies affiliated with McMaster Children's Hospital and McMaster University. "We need a high and even response rate."

Statistics Canada randomly selected 13,500 families with children to take part in the Ontario Child Health Study and started contacting them in October. Families can't volunteer because it must be a random sample from across the province.

So far, it's estimated 65 per cent of the families chosen will agree to take part. Boyle says that's far too low, especially when compared to more than 90 per cent in the original study just over 30 years ago which put Hamilton at the forefront of children's mental health research.

"We knew it was going to be a tough sell but we feel it's important," said Boyle, the Canada Research Chair in the Social Determinants of Child Health and director of the centre. "The information on child and youth mental health is out of date."

The original study done in 1983, with updates in 1987 and 1999, remains the dominant data used to help determine health policy and funding.

Its shocking findings were that one in five children have a mental health issue and most go untreated. The research contributed to $3 billion in funding for provincial and federal programs and services, including the creation of Ontario Early Years Centres.

But a lot has changed since Boyle did the original study with the late Dr. David (Dan) Offord, the namesake for Hamilton's renowned research centre.

Boyle rhymes off major shifts in immigration, a growing divide between rich and poor, the breakdown of families leading to higher numbers of single parents, and differences in teen pregnancy for a start.

However, there are far better programs now for kids under 6 in Ontario. This has led to the question of whether children's mental health issues really are more prevalent and severe today or if this is a false perception.

The last study "brought attention to this and it stimulated resources," said Boyle. "That's why these studies are so important — so the public knows and policy-makers know what is actually happening."

The $8.3-million study funded by the province and the Canadian Institutes of Health Research requires families to give one to two hours of their time.

"It's crucially important to our work," said Kim Moran, CEO of Children's Mental Health Ontario, which represents treatment providers. "The data we're using right now is old. … We have to have the information up to date to deliver the right programs."

The much-anticipated sequel to the original study of 1,900 families is far more ambitious. It's seeking a minimum of 7,000 families with a total of at least 10,000 children age 4 to 17 but, ideally, thousands more than that. It will also look at communities, including Hamilton, to see how neighbourhoods and school exacerbate or mitigate mental health issues.

"If we have no data, we have no action," said Dr. Jean Clinton, a leading child psychiatrist from Hamilton who advises the province on education. "We need to know how many of our young people are suffering with mental health problems. It's a huge thing."

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Study of children’s mental health falls short of recruits

A Hamilton study providing crucial up-to-date information about the mental health of Ontario's children is struggling to recruit families.

"We're really concerned," said Dr. Michael Boyle, who is leading the research at the Offord Centre for Child Studies affiliated with McMaster Children's Hospital and McMaster University. "We need a high and even response rate."

Statistics Canada randomly selected 13,500 families with children to take part in the Ontario Child Health Study and started contacting them in October. Families can't volunteer because it must be a random sample from across the province.

So far, it's estimated 65 per cent of the families chosen will agree to take part. Boyle says that's far too low, especially when compared to more than 90 per cent in the original study just over 30 years ago which put Hamilton at the forefront of children's mental health research.

"We knew it was going to be a tough sell but we feel it's important," said Boyle, the Canada Research Chair in the Social Determinants of Child Health and director of the centre. "The information on child and youth mental health is out of date."

The original study done in 1983, with updates in 1987 and 1999, remains the dominant data used to help determine health policy and funding.

Its shocking findings were that one in five children have a mental health issue and most go untreated. The research contributed to $3 billion in funding for provincial and federal programs and services, including the creation of Ontario Early Years Centres.

But a lot has changed since Boyle did the original study with the late Dr. David (Dan) Offord, the namesake for Hamilton's renowned research centre.

Boyle rhymes off major shifts in immigration, a growing divide between rich and poor, the breakdown of families leading to higher numbers of single parents, and differences in teen pregnancy for a start.

However, there are far better programs now for kids under 6 in Ontario. This has led to the question of whether children's mental health issues really are more prevalent and severe today or if this is a false perception.

The last study "brought attention to this and it stimulated resources," said Boyle. "That's why these studies are so important — so the public knows and policy-makers know what is actually happening."

The $8.3-million study funded by the province and the Canadian Institutes of Health Research requires families to give one to two hours of their time.

"It's crucially important to our work," said Kim Moran, CEO of Children's Mental Health Ontario, which represents treatment providers. "The data we're using right now is old. … We have to have the information up to date to deliver the right programs."

The much-anticipated sequel to the original study of 1,900 families is far more ambitious. It's seeking a minimum of 7,000 families with a total of at least 10,000 children age 4 to 17 but, ideally, thousands more than that. It will also look at communities, including Hamilton, to see how neighbourhoods and school exacerbate or mitigate mental health issues.

"If we have no data, we have no action," said Dr. Jean Clinton, a leading child psychiatrist from Hamilton who advises the province on education. "We need to know how many of our young people are suffering with mental health problems. It's a huge thing."